The Wind Waker: The Hero of Winds
by PsioniCM
Summary: Wind Waker novelization. Link has the most eventful birthday of his life which leads him into pirate filled adventure, and a larger world than he's ready for, to rescue his sister Aryll.
1. Chapter 1: Outset Island

Chapter 1: Outset Island

On a small vegetated crag of an island, a boy in a faded cloth shirt lay drying on the sand, gazing out across the Great Sea in the midmorning sun. Seagulls hung silently in the sweltering sky as small white clouds drifted across the distant watery surface of the restful sea.

The boy listened to the gentle lap-lap of the waves on the sand and the insects working tirelessly in the grass nearby. Today was his birthday, he was sure, but now nearly half way through it, no-one else seemed to have noticed. Perhaps it wasn't? No, no, he was definitely sure. He was definitely twelve years old, and he felt that was very important. But why didn't anyone else?

He turned to look behind him, using the grey granite rock for support as he rolled over, allowing his unruly blonde hair to flop wetly in front of his eyes. An island home lay just off the sandy path before him, its storm-battered thatch and palm wood walls had been kept in good order by Orca and Sturgeon, the brothers who lived there.

The boy stood up, brushing the damp sand from his orange tan-cloth trousers.

''Hoy! Link!' called a shrill voice.

The boy looked around at the sound of his name, his eyes coming to rest on the excited waving arm of a small girl in a floral dress. Link's sister was a head shorter than he was, and a few years younger, but had the same pointed ears and equally bright blonde hair. She held one end of a copper-brown collapsible telescope in her right hand and was dragging the other along the ground behind her.

She stopped a few yards from where Link was standing, and concealed the telescope hurriedly behind her back.

''Hoy, Link', she said, slowly gathering her breath.

'Hello, Aryll', Link replied.

'I've got a surprise for you, Link', she said, curtly.

'What's that, then?' asked Link.

'It's a surprise!' she said, her voice trilling at the excitement of the secrecy, and she turned and ran back up the path. Link followed, at a walk. Perhaps it was his birthday after all.

The island of Outset was a southerly one in the Great Sea and as such, rarely encountered large ships. A small merchant vessel was currently moored alongside the wooden pier that extended from the shoreline before a house built close to the cliff, where Link and Aryll lived with their grandmother.

Behind the home of the two wise brothers, the rough sandy yellow path followed the rising cliff closely up to a modest plateau, on which rested the home of Rose and her two small children. The cliff behind the house quickly became shear and unclimbable, with a thickly wooded peak, walled inside by the natural form of the rock.

Link caught up with Aryll by the low bushes that grew near the island spring.

'What's the surprise, then?' He asked.

'Did you forget what day it is, Link?'

He hadn't, but he said nothing.

'I didn't! It's your birthday! Surprise!' Aryll shouted, throwing her arms up into the air above her head, caused a sudden flight of the gaggle of seagulls that had been perched on the fence.

Link watched as the seagulls flew around the tower making their screeching call. Aryll loved seagulls, she thought they were cute, and she was kind to them. They were undisturbed by her presence, but while they landed nearby to watch her, they gave Link a wide berth. She didn't seem to think this was strange, and continued her excited wobble.

'Happy Birthday, Link!' she said again, smiling at him.

Link reciprocated her smile, and moved forward to give her a brotherly hug. 'Thanks, Aryll', he said as she returned the embrace, 'That's really nice of you, I thought everyone had forgotten.' Link stepped back and said, 'Grandma wants us home for lunch soon.'

'Yes, brother' Aryll said, cheekily. 'Do you like my present?' She asked, jumping up and down.

'Was the surprise the present?'

Aryll clasped her free hand to her mouth and squeaked and squirmed with the realisation of what she had just said. 'No!' she said, through her hand, 'It's a surprise!'

Link laughed at her, 'I hope it's good!'

'It's lovely!' she chirped

The seagulls were hopping along the rocks behind them, and took off into the air as they broke into a run down the path to their home. Link jumped up the small wooden ramp and opened the door gentlemanly for his little sister, and followed her inside.

It was a tradition amongst the islanders of Outset, that when a boy reached the age of twelve, he came of age, and was considered old enough to make his own decisions about his life. It was also said that this was the age that a boy, in ancient times, has come to the land and proved himself a hero. On most islands in the Great Sea, the actual legend of this hero had been lost in the mists of time, but on Outset, it was a popular tale with children and adults alike, and was quite often told by the fireside on stormy nights. This lunchtime, however, Grandma told it again.

'It is said, that long ago", she began, quietly "there existed a kingdom where a golden power lay hidden, which brought peace and prosperity to a land of green forests and tall mountains. This land had bustling cities, great lakes, wide plains and rivers, quiet villages, and many different races of people inhabiting it, caring for it. The people lived well and enjoyed their lives.

'But one day, a man of great evil found the golden power and took it for himself. He used its strength, and spread darkness and terror across the green kingdom. The trees wilted, the grass turned brown and crinkly, the sky became thunderous and loud, and monsters began roaming the night. The people were distraught, terrified and in despair. They lost their homes and their livelihood, they lost their good king and their faith, and their light and happy world was plunged into darkness.

'As their hour of doom seemed at hand, and as all hope had died, a young boy garbed in green appeared as if from nowhere. He valiantly battled against the forces that held the land in shadow, and with the blade of evil's bane, he sealed the dark one away and gave the land light, and the people rebuilt their great cities, and returned to the lives that had been taken from them, no longer in fear, no longer in danger.

'The boy, who travelled through time to save the land, was known as the Hero of Legend.

'The boy disappeared from that land as mysteriously as he had come, and the people thanked the goddesses for his help, and for their deliverance, and over many happy generations the boy's tale became legend.

'But then, a day came when a dark wind began to blow across the kingdom. The sun was blotted out, and the great evil that all thought had been sealed away by the hero, again crept forth from the depths of the earth, eager to resume its dark designs.

'The people believed that the Hero would once again come to save them, to rid the land of the oncoming darkness, and restore light to their lives.

'But the hero did not appear…

'Faced by an onslaught of evil, with monsters surrounding every town and village, their crops burnt, their soldiers broken, and their king held in his own castle, the people could do nothing but appeal to the gods. In their last hour, as doom closed around them, they left their future in the hands of fate.'

Aryll sat with her mouth agape, her spoon frozen in mid-flight between her bread and her mouth, her blue eyes wide with the depth of the story. Link, lunch also forgotten, was leaning forward, both elbows on the table, one hand on each side of his head, absorbed completely in the legend of the Hero. Grandma paused, briefly, allowing the effect of the legendary tale to sink deeply into her blonde-haired grandchildren.

'None now know what became of that ancient kingdom, but we remember the legend of the Hero, carried as if by the wind on the sea, and we tell the story to keep it alive in our hearts.

'And today…', she looked intently at Link, who at first didn't notice he was now the centre of his Grandma's attention, and sat up with a start when he realised what was going on, 'Today, you are the same age as that young hero of legend.'

Link sat up, his eyes wide, his mouth open and his eyebrows raised. He had never expected his Grandma to actually hold him to the old coming of age custom!

Grandma reached behind her, to the table by the fire, and picked up a package wrapped in brown paper. She pulled what was left Link's bread aside, and placed the rustling packet on the table in front of him. It crinkled gently as it settled into place. Aryll said nothing, her spoon still clasped in a half position in her hand, still full of the soft bread, and she was absolutely still. Only her eyes gave away that she was still following what was going on.

'As is the custom on our island', she said as Link began to unwrap the paper, 'when a boy reaches the age of twelve', Link pulled apart the paper to reveal some light green cloth, 'the tradition is to garb them in the green of fields, as the boy in the legend would once have worn.'

He knew Grandma would have put a lot of work into making it, and felt he should look gratuitous, but he was unable to hide the disappointment from his eyes. Grandma softened her smooth old voice, and leaning forward, said:

'In the olden days, boys coming of age were considered to be men, and would have been taught the ways of the sword to prepare them for battle with their enemies, so that they may cast down evil, and know courage as the hero in the story would once have done. But we don't live in such an age any more. Our ways are the ways of peace.' She looked at Link's still dejected face, leant back in her chair, and smiled, 'Don't look so disappointed, dear one! Just try them on.'

Link took the clothes in hand, and crossing the stone floor of his home, he climbed up the wooden ladder to the platform above that served as the upstairs area of their home. This area was mostly used by Aryll and Link, for Grandma had a little more difficulty with the ladder than she'd like to admit. The floorboards creaked as Link crossed them, and knelt down on the green and white patterned rug that took up a small section of the decking.

Above the rug was a large round wreath of leaves and flowers, hanging on a wooden peg on the wall. There were two crossed wooden swords suspended on the lower half of the wreath, and above them, hanging on the wall was Link's family shield. This was once owned by his father, who he only had very vague memories of, but now served as a decoration of their home, another tradition passed down from days of conflict. The shield was well polished and glinted with the light that passed through the small windows of their house. It held a motif of three golden triangles, laid corner to corner to form a larger triangle, at each corner of which was a raised cap of reflective steel. The right hand corner held a whirly pattern, and at the bottom, was some kind of winged animal with two horns and a rather scary looking mask. Link reckoned this was supposed to scare off anyone who dared to attack it, but he didn't know what kind of animal it was. The rest of the front of the shield was alloyed with a layer of darkened bronze, something that not even Sturgeon was sure how to do.

Before he had been tall enough to reach the shield he had been forbidden from removing it from the wall, but Grandma had once retrieved it for a rainy evening's inspection by the fire, and had even let him wear it on his arm, yet he could hardly lift it.

He laid his new 'hero' garments out on the rug and regarded them carefully. The dark green tunic was made of stout wool, and had been woven tightly to keep out the cold, and coated in some kind of flexible waxy resin to keep out the rain. The sleeves and undershirt were dyed a lighter green, and were of a much finer weave, so they were more comfortable than the tunic would have been alone. There was also a conical hat, of the same weave, colour and waterproofing as the tunic.

Link tried them on, and was a little less than impressed with the creamy-white tights that were now encasing his legs. The hat came nowhere near to covering his disorderly hair, and flopped pointlessly down his back. He felt it would look a bit silly to anyone looking at him, like a wizard who had gotten his magic cap shrunk in the wash. He liked the belt though; it was nice dark leather, with a shiny, round, brass clasp moulded like a breath of wind. He also had some sturdy comfortable boots from the package, much nicer than his old sandals, which were getting to be a little small.

Climbing cautiously back down the ladder, Link met the gaze of his family. Aryll had got down off of her chair, but was still holding her now empty spoon out in front of her, half raised to her chin, and grinned sweetly at him, as only a six year-old girl can. Grandma was gently smiling too, a loving smile, and looked at him through dim-sighted eyes.

'Time certainly flies!' she said, 'I can't believe you're already old enough to wear these clothes! And they suit you perfectly! A perfect fit!'

Link managed a weak smile. He felt daft.

'You only have to wear them for one day, so don't look so down. Be proud, child!'

It was true of course; he thought as he turned towards the door, he'd never had a finer garment. He just didn't like it. It was too old fashioned, and far too warm for the time of year. He turned back to his Grandma, who looked back at him expectantly. She was about half a head shorter than Link, who was growing like a weed. From his point of view, he looked like one, but he didn't let that on. Well, not too much.

'Thank you, Grandma', he said, with a brief smile.

'There's a good boy', she replied, 'tonight I'm going to invite the whole town over for your birthday party, your Grandma is going to make your favourite soup for you tonight, so I'd better start getting ready, shouldn't I?'

Link smiled and turned to the door. Aryll turned briefly to Grandma, took her old hand in her own small hands, and smiled. Grandma returned the smile, as if to say, "Yes, go and play", and Aryll ran to the door after her brother.

As Link exited his home with Aryll close behind, he was forced abruptly to a halt as he met the gaze of Sue-Belle, Sturgeon's granddaughter, who was fetching water from the island's spring.

'Good afternoon Sue-Belle', Aryll chirped.

'Ah, good day Aryll', she said, brightly, and then turning her gaze onto Link, who quickly looked sheepishly at the floor, 'Oh, my! Link! Congratulations! That outfit really looks cute on you!'

Link continued to look at the small patch of path that lay between his new boots, as he felt his face turning red.

'Oh Sue-Belle!' Aryll piped up, 'How'd'you carry big jars on your head like that!' and pointing at the purple jar balanced on Sue-Belle's bluish hair, asked, 'Can you show me? Please?'

'Well now, Aryll, it just takes practice. All you do is pick up a jar and place it carefully on the top of you head with a cloth wound like this…' Sue-Belle started to explain, with Aryll jumping excitedly.

Link, realising that Sue-Belle and Aryll had their attention on each other, started to step slowly away from the two of them. As he did so, he caught the eye of Sturgeon, standing on his balcony, waving his long, smooth walking staff happily in the air.

''Hoy, Link! Up here!'

Link looked up, into the face of their island's oldest resident. His long white beard and moustache almost completely hid his mouth, chest and legs from view, but his head was bald. He had quite often had lessons in history and geography from this man, and knew him to be a jolly fellow, who threw knowledge around like a blanket on whoever he could speak to, assuming first that people wanted to hear what it was he wanted to say, even if they didn't.

'That's correct. You're a smart one!' he adjusted his round spectacles with his free hand, 'knowing where to focus one's attention is important! Looking forward when you are running, for instance, is something you should always do.'

Link knew this of course, but Sturgeon with his long knobbed staff, often spoke as if he was doing people a favour by telling them things he felt was important.

'Of course, that's not the only thing I know! No! Not remotely! I can teach you a few more things if you'll just climb up that ladder over there and drop by my room for some expert tutelage.' Sturgeon beckoned Link with his staff, and looked over at Aryll who was now trying to balance Sue-Belle's jar on her yellow hair. Sue-Belle kept hold of it as Aryll eagerly tried to jump up and down with the jar on her head.

'I don't think she'll be pestering you for a while, yet, Link,' Sturgeon said, probably with a grin, but his beard concealed his expression, 'do come in.' He turned and walked back in through his balcony door.

Sturgeon never shouted or instructed. When he wanted someone to visit him, he simply spoke to them as they were passing as if they were expected, and he expected people to expect to be expected.

Link scaled the ladder, climbing up to the door to the right of the stout balcony and pushed it open by the iron ring doorknocker that doubled as a handle.

He heard a laugh from Sturgeon as he went inside, and Link could see, from finding himself being looked up and down, that his birthday present had been noticed.

'So soon? My, my, my…'

Link stood and wished he'd chosen a hiding-in-the-bushes tactic, as he was analysed head to toe.

'If you're already old enough to be wearing those clothes…' Sturgeon trailed off, and Link hoped he could make his retreat, but Sturgeon continued '…Then it's going to be very important for you to gather as much wisdom as you can from now on! If you're going to make your way in the world, that is, Link! Do you have any idea what you'd like to do with your days?'

Link continued to stare at Sturgeon, who had raised one of his narrow eyebrows, and was stroking his wide moustache with his hand. The brief silence that followed was longer than was polite, and Link felt a brief surge of panic as he realised he was supposed to say something, and radically came up with, 'Er…No.'

'Well my boy, you're in luck, I've been studying a wealth of topics since long before you were born. I'm what you'd call a brain-of-all-trades! And you're a smart little fellow yourself, aren't you? I've been thinking it's time for me to pass some of my wisdom down, and maybe you're the one I should pass it down to…'

He paused for effect, didn't get anything obvious from Link, and leant forward enquiringly, 'So, what would you like to be tutored on, for your debut day in the big world?'

Link didn't really want to be tutored on anything at the moment, this was his birthday, his twelfth birthday, and he wanted to enjoy his birthday without everyone telling him how cute he looked in his over-warm coming of age outfit, or trying to organise his life. In truth, he wanted to he wanted to be a trader like his father and mother, and visiting the inhabitants of the other islands in this area of the Great Sea. He didn't remember much about his parents, and what little he knew of their passing he had learnt from his Grandma.

One day, when he was about four, they had gone out trading, as they always did, with a supply of Grandma's soup preserved in glass jars in the stores, for it was very popular over the sea, she said, leaving Link and baby Aryll at home with Grandma.

A great storm had blown up in the afternoon, a great and terrible storm, such as no-one, not even Sturgeon could remember the likes of ever happening before. The rain fell sideways, the lightning hit the trees, the thunder crashed in the sky, and the wind blew as if powered by the anger of the wind god himself. Link knew of this storm, he remembered it in his dreams; his nightmares.

In the morning, following the storm, many of the island's trees had fallen, and many of the houses on the island had been damaged from the crashing of the waves and the wind, and a huge rock had been pushed up onto the shore. Massive it was, as big as Link's house. As it had settled into the sand around it, the islanders had later cut and smoothed it to a platform from which to build the islands pier and landing stage. However, on that morning, no ships arrived on the coast of Outset. For days, and eventually weeks, and even months afterwards, Grandma would make the journey to the island watchtower, which had miraculously made it unscathed through the bad weather, to look out across the sea in hopes of the return of her daughter and son-in-law. She often took Aryll and Link with her, read to them, sang to them in the sun, and told them stories of wind gods and far away lands. When Aryll was still small, she said she wanted to see the faraway lands, so Grandma had given her a telescope for her fourth birthday, so she could look out onto the surrounding seas at the nearby islands.

By that point, Grandma had become too old to climb the ladder to the tower, but encouraged Aryll to do so, to look out into the sea, never telling her to look for anything specific, but always asked at dinner time what she had seen today, whether it was jumping fish, Beedle's shop ship, or just seagulls, she always sounded interested. Aryll on the other hand, had taken to love the tower, and had discovered the favourite food of the seagulls from Beedle, who had given her a Hyoi pear. She had tamed and eventually made friends with the seagulls, which now followed her around, bringing her things from the sea, driftwood, shells, sometimes even rupees, which she used to buy more pears from Beedle, when he passed.

The watchtower had become known as "Aryll's Lookout" to the islanders, and she took great pride in the name, using it all the more often to stare out over the sea. To be fair, this had proved useful to the islanders, she had once spotted in the near-dark that Orca, in the distance, had fallen from his canoe while fishing (which had never before happened, and never happened again), and Abe and Mesa had been able to get out on one of the other canoes in time to prevent him from being lost to the sea in the darkness. Apparently it had been a really big fish. Aryll had been praised as a hero that evening, and Orca had promised to buy her all the pears she could ever want. She had said that she didn't need any, as the seagulls would play with her, even without the mystical pears, and she had insisted on having Orca paint a couple of seagulls on the side of her telescope, which he did - flawlessly.

There had been other times when Aryll's lookout had been a lifesaver for the islanders, returning late from fishing, guided solely by Aryll's lantern on the watchtower, or by following the sound of a seagull flying in front of their canoe. They never admit they'd followed a seagull, as what kind experienced mariner would be as daft as to do that?

Aryll had insisted that it had been one of her seagulls had helped them. Link suspected that the other islanders secretly believed that she could understand the language of the gulls. To the islanders, she was a legend in her own time. Zill and Joel, the two small boys of Abe and Rose who lived at the top of the hill, often spoke of the story of the seagulls that saved the fishing canoes from the sea, but their parents denied telling it.

But his parents, that is, Link and Aryll's parents, had never returned after the storm, no wreckage of their boat was ever found, no news from the merchants visiting other islands of the great sea ever reached Outset regarding the small trading ship that sold the finest soup in the Great Sea. They had been lost.

Life after the storm had returned to normal, the homes were repaired, the pier was built, and Link and Aryll took lessons from Sturgeon, Orca and the other islanders, helping them to do things on the island, growing vegetables in the sandy soil, trimming back Mesa's lawn, repairing old bits of fencing. Orca had taught them to fish from the pier, and had made them rods, giving them bait bought from Beedle. Grandma would never allow them out in the canoes, and she had put up a lot of fuss over Orca having them taught to swim in the shallow channel between the islands peaks, and had watched dubiously from the decking in front of their house.

Grandma had never sold her soup again; but she still made it for special occasions on the island, when the whole village would come to enjoy it. The soup was highly thought of by all. It tasted great hot, or cold, it was nutritious and filling, and preserved in waxed glass jars kept most of the islanders fed during times of drought or storm.

Link looked Sturgeon in the eye of his spectacle blankly; he had no idea what it was he wanted to do with his newfound manhood, so said so, 'I don't know,'

Sturgeon merely laughed and said with a smile, or rather with an upturned moustache, as his mouth was completely hidden by his beard, 'Well my boy! You are in luck once again! Everything you see tacked to the walls here is something that I've researched thoroughly. And before you ask, yes, I do know my filing system is odd. Organisational issues aside, however, it's all extremely useful information. You would do well to read it all very carefully. Reading leads to knowing, you know!' He lifted his chin and looked smug, a product of his own wise sayings.

Suddenly, there was a large wood-muffled crash. The walls shook, the floor vibrated, and two of the high shelves on the far wall promptly gave away their ceramic contents to the loving embrace of the floor. They smashed with all the loudness that came to be associated with falling pottery, with the customary last little tinkle in the following silence. Sturgeon was stood straight upright, he held the intake of breath until he was sure nothing else was going to smash, and let out a loud, croaky screech. Link took a few steps back, out of range of the flailing staff that was now banging repeatedly on the floor. If Sturgeon had been a kettle he would have let out a lot of steam and whistled. However, he was an old man, so he shouted.

'Such a RACKET! CAN'T you keep that QUIET!? You've knocked everything off my SHELVES, YOU DRATTED HOOLIGAN!'

The banging of the staff on the floorboards lasted a few seconds longer, and then he stopped, and panted, groaning with the effort he had just expended. He recomposed himself, and faced Link.

'Honestly!' he sighed with an air of exasperation, and added, more to himself than to Link, 'The hooligan I'm referring to is my younger and much less intelligent brother, who lives just downstairs. He hates studying. All day, every day, the lout just exercises and practices with his weapons. Does he exercise his brain? No! The brain's a muscle, too… I think…

Link knew this, of course, but said nothing.

'Anyway, the only thing he DOES study is the art of fighting, fencing and whatnot! As if that's of any use to anyone… I ask you, what's a brother to do!'

Link wasn't sure if he was supposed to answer this question, and managed 'Er…', before Sturgeon continued,

'You're a smart lad, Link. I'm sure everything I've written down and tacked to my walls will be useful in life. A lifetime of knowledge, all for you! You just be sure to take the time to read it all through very carefully.'

With that, he pottered off to his desk, where he sat down, and laying his staff on the floor, took up an inky quill and put it to the paper of a small, but seemingly quite new, brown leather-bound book. Link looked over at the right hand wall. Apart from a shelf, the contents of which lay in a smashed pile on the floor, the wall had only paper stuck to it, but quite a lot of paper, it has to be said. Link walked to the first stack of paper on the wall, next to the desk, and glanced at the title page.

Sturgeon's One-Point Lessons

Lesson One

The Energy of Life

To be young is to know no limits to one's stamina. To become stronger, one must first know oneself, to know the limits of ones abilities. As one experiences trials and hardships in life, one will naturally gain more stamina, both mentally and physically, and will come to know how one can cope with certain situations.

However, if one is injured, the amount one can do will be reduced. At such times it may be advisable to rest and recuperate, eating such foods as would benefit a person who is injured, high in goodness and nutrition…

Link flipped to the next yellowing page, and the next, and through several more, which were filled with diagrams of leg casts, injury avoidance strategies, how to make the best kinds of food with just what you had to hand, methods of building shelters against the rain, and other such information. Deciding he would come back and read this when he had more time, he moved onto the next bulk of paper attached to the wall

Sturgeon's One-Point Lessons

Lesson Two

Do Not Underestimate the Sea

It's easy to get swept up by a little success at swimming, but the sea can be fickle! Swimming for too long in cold will drain one's energy and eventually one will sink.

Link knew this lesson, he thought, as he flipped through pages of "how to save a drowning person", "The importance of an old Deku-wood barrel in a storm", and "how to teach one to swim", Grandma had told him many times of the dangers of swimming in the sea, and he had been put off swimming in it for many years. He could swim, it was true, but he couldn't swim very far before he became tired and, soon, exhausted by the water. Aryll was a better swimmer than he, and the seagulls would swoop down and swim beside her in the water, providing he wasn't too close. He moved onto the next bundle of papers.

Sturgeon's One-Point Lessons

Lesson Three

The Great Map of Life

As one is often hasty and acts without thinking when young, it is easy to get lost on one's way. It is at confused times such as this that one must refer to an area map and compass. These tools are undoubtedly important, especially sometimes when one finds oneself lost in the mists of unknown lands. One may be able to buy a map in these lands, to help the true path to be found…

The papers went into detail of different methods of using a compass, taking bearings, and noting landmarks, the importance of recording one's journey, and information on the various standards of maps that had been produced in different areas of the great sea.

'Ah yes, Link!' Sturgeon interrupted from close behind him as he read, 'The maps are important, but one must not forget that you may also guide yourself by the sun or the stars, or even the direction of the winds' Sturgeon added, peering over Link's shoulder at his obvious keen interest in the layout of the ocean. 'Come Link, there is something you must see.'

Sturgeon led Link over to his desk and pulled out a roll of several layers of stiff fibrous parchment from beneath it, waxed on the reverse side for waterproofing and strength, and rolled in soft swine leather for protection. The parchment was yellow with age, or perhaps with resin, and smelt faintly of seaweed. A small brass compass slid out of the final fold as it was placed on the desk. 'I'm very proud of this,' he said, 'when I and my brother were lads; we journeyed as crew with a merchant ship to far-away places on the Great Sea. I do recall in fact, that it was the same ship that your father later captained. I spent some years living on Windfall island, far to the north, where I was married. Orca and I, we were closer then, I was as skilled a swordsman as he, we studied some of the larger islands thereabouts, and drew their positions on this chart.'

'What's that island there?' Link asked, pointing to an island high on the chart,

'Ah, that is what is known as… as… The… the… The Fortress,' he said, crawling through his memory to recall the name, 'One could be paid a lot of rupees to chart that island, and a very rich man hired us for just that. He got the good copy of course, but this one of ours is nearly as accurate.' Lifting up the front of the map, he revealed a larger, more detailed plan of the island, split into several levels, indicating rooms and battlements and doors. He pointed at the main map again, 'He lived on this island, Windfall.'

The rest of the top chart was empty; save for a light grid pattern splitting up the Great Sea into sections for easy mapping, Sturgeon said that he and Orca had not made copies of very much of it. There was a good map of Outset, however.

'I want you to have these charts, Link.' He said, seriously, as he folded it away, 'One should know of the world around him. And the compass, may it guide you well, whatever you decide to do. If you should wish for some more of my knowledge, do not hesitate to consult the walls, or indeed, my self!' He chuckled at a joke that Link felt he had not quite understood, and went back to his desk.

'And take this, Link.' Sturgeon offered him the book he had been writing in, 'It is your birthday, after all.'

The book was a tidy duplicate of the rough notes that hung around the walls of the room. Link opened the book at the second page and scanned the titles of Sturgeon's remaining One-Point Lessons.

Lesson Four: Material Goods, a study of trading, and important equipment to have when travelling.

Lesson Five: The importance of learning from one's mistakes and making good use of one's time.

Lesson Six: Human relations, how to deal with difficult people, and good ways to talk to people in different states of mind, and to never be afraid to ask for help or advice.

Lesson Seven: Knowing one's abilities, and learning new ones.

Lesson Eight: Changing one's perspective. A lesson in literal and lateral thinking, and of paying attention to one's surroundings.

Lesson Nine: A Fool and His Rupees Are Soon Parted. A lesson in basic finance.

Lesson Ten: Becoming the Champion of Life. Learn well the lessons one through nine. Do not give up, do not complain, and do not stay up all night. Sleep leads to better knowing.

Sturgeon had obviously spend a great deal of time creating the book, and writing down all things he felt were important for a child who came of age.

Link knew what it took to write such a work, he had spent many an hour practicing his letters under Sturgeons watchful and sturdy eye, usually on chalked slate with a watery brush. The second half of the book was blank.

'Why are there so many blank pages?' Link asked.

Sturgeon looked at him, quizzically, 'One must always leave blank pages in a book of knowledge, for it will never be finished, surely I have taught you this?'

Link recited immediately, 'There is always more to find and to learn, leave no stone unturned.'

''Hoy, yes, my boy! These pages are for you!' He chuckled gently against his staff. 'You must go into the world and find your own knowledge. I of course, will always be happy to hear what you learn. One can never learn too many things.'

'Thank you Sturgeon, I will take good care of it' Link told him, sincerely. Good paper was a very valuable thing.

Smiling, he thanked Sturgeon for his time and maps, book, and compass in hand, and made his way to the door, back out into the sun.

Seeing that Sue-Belle was moving jars around on her own, he wondered what had become of Aryll, so he ran and climbed the ramp to his house.

'Grandma!' he called, 'Grandma, look what Sturgeon gave me!' He ran in, and placing the map case on the kitchen table, upsetting one of the 'Roost Island Glass' mugs onto it's side, and turned to see Grandma by the fire, carefully placing some finely chopped carrots into the cast iron bowl. The smell of soup filled the air, much as it had done at lunchtime.

'That smells great, Grandma!' Link exclaimed.

'I'm glad you like it. Now, what's all this hasty hollering all about?'

Hasty hollering was one of the things Grandma disapproved of from people. She didn't like to rush around excitedly and didn't like other people to either. She said, however, as she had said before, on many occasions, "You can be excited all you want, as long as you don't upset the furniture."

'Sorry.' Link said, automatically, and picking up the mug set it right in its place by the wall next to the end of the shelf. Luckily it had been empty, and no damage had been done to it.

'So, what did Sturgeon give you?' She asked.

'It's a map,' Link replied, a broad smile spreading across his face, 'of the whole ocean. And a compass!' He opened out the map for her to see.

'Oh… It's very… nice, dear' she said slowly. Link could tell from the tone that she didn't really think it was "nice", 'Why is so much of it blank?' she asked.

'Sturgeon says he never finished copying it from the other map, the one they sold to the rich man on that island', Link pointed to the island he had been introduced to, not ten minutes before, as Windfall. 'Have you seen Aryll?'

'Yes, Link. She came to show me how well she can carry a pot on her head, and then she went to find you.' Grandma told him.

'I'm going to find her,' Link said, 'I'll be back soon!'

'Be sure you are, it's your Birthday party you know,'

'Yes, Grandma.' He said.

As he came out onto the ramp, he could see over the top of the bushes that the seagulls were gathering around the top of the watchtower. This was normally a clear indication of Aryll's whereabouts, and he set off in that direction leaping from the decking onto the path, directly in front of Sue-Bell, nearly upsetting the pot on her head,

'Off to find Aryll, are you?' she asked.

Link nodded as he passed.

'All right then.'

The track through the island was not a man-made construction. It was instead just mud, hardened by the passing of generations of island feet. In the summer, the path was solid and cracked under the heat from the sky, and quickly became a raging stream during storms. When it was squelchy, the islanders covered it with sand and pebbles to stop people slipping.

A low wooden bridge spanned the channel between the two halves of the island. It was littered with groups of large boulders in a variety of sizes and shapes, ancient cliff stacks, Link had learned, eroded by the waves over hundreds of years. The three northern facing rocks formed a line across the bay, and had been flattened by hand with basic tools many generations ago. The bridge was then built in two sections of crossways planks on supporting beams between the ramp-like rocks on the beaches, and the central flattened rock in the centre

As Link reached the central rock, he heard a shout from behind him.

''Hoy, Link!'

Link stopped his jog, and turned to face a small boy in a white shirt.

''Hoy Joel.' He said.

'Hey, is it true that you can jump out to that rock out there? Huh, is it? Is it? Tell me?'

Joel waved the stick he was holding in the direction of three successive pillar-like rocks protruding from the surface of the water.

'I can.' Link told him.

'Show me! Go on! Please, I want to see! Please, Link' Joel pleaded.

Link sighed, 'Not now, I'm looking for Aryll,'

'Owh!' Joel said as he walked on across the bridge.

The beach was smaller on this side of the island, and the earth was rockier and steeper, rising to meet the cliff above. As he crossed from the bridge to the path, Joel's younger brother Zill spotted him, and chased after him. He wasn't really sure what to make of Zill, as he would chase anything that moved, usually Joel or Link, much to their annoyance. Despite his small size, he was surprisingly fast.

Link stopped and turned to look at him. Slightly shorter than Joel, he was about half Link's size, and his nose dribbled rather messily from his face.

'So? So? So?' He said, with a loud sniff, 'So… what are you doin'?'

Link replied, 'I'm just going to find Aryll.' He turned away and jogged up the path a little further, when he felt something run into the back of his leg. He found Zill standing behind him, as if he'd been there all the time, as if he'd not been chasing him at all.

'So… aren't those clothes hot?'

'Yes, they are.'

The best way to deal with Zill, Link had found, was not to answer too many of his questions, because you'd be there all day answering them if he did. Link tried to ignore him as best he could. Turning away again, he walked up the path to the place where the walkway to the watchtower came away from the cliff, and began to climb the ladder, counting the rungs as he went. He knew there were forty, he'd counted the rungs many times, but this time he counted them anyway, one at a time, just to make sure, saying the numbers to himself as he climbed.

From Aryll's Lookout, and indeed from many other places on the island, it was usually possible to see several other lands as tiny grey blurs in the haze of the sea. On the rare days that it were clear, it was possible to make out colours and identify common shapes, such as trees, but today the beating sun had all but hidden the islands in the haze, and they were nothing but outlines of darkened sections of sky.

Link peered over the top of the ladder onto the deck of the tower, a straight sturdy tree trunk build into an outcrop of rock. Surely enough, there was Aryll, looking out over the island towards their house, while four of the sea's gulls were contentedly pecking and bickering over the small patch of space be hind her. She raised her arm to wave at a passing gull, which didn't seem to acknowledge her. Link pondered for a moment. Could she really talk to the gulls?

'Ah! 'Hoy, big brother!' she said, turning around to Link, scattering the gulls, 'Did Sturgeon tell you some nice things?'

'Yes,' he replied, 'and he gave me a map of the Great Sea!'

'The gulls told me they saw a pig!' She giggled, and wobbled her head from side to side, tapping tassels of yellow-blond hair alternately on her shoulders.

'So, anyway, Link…' she said, her voice becoming shrill again, as it always did when she was desperate to say something, and so she said, at some speed, 'Can you… clos-yor-eys'n'hol-out-yor-hand?'

Link did so, smiling.

'HAPPY BIRTHDAY!' Aryll shouted. He felt something cylindrical position itself in his hand, and opened his eyes, to find Aryll's telescope, her most precious possession, now in his.

Aryll beamed at his shocked face, 'it's just for one day,' she giggled once more, and then when she received no response, added 'So? Well? Do you like it?'

Link found his tongue, moved his other hand to better secure his sisters treasure, 'It's lovely,' he stammered, 'thank you.'

'I'm letting you borrow this special gift just because you're my big brother! Aren't you lucky?!' She turned round to the barrier, placed her hands on it, and started jumping up and down excitedly, 'Ooh, why don't you try it out! Right now! Have a look at our house from here!'

He stepped forward and extended the telescope, for it was in two copper sections. The smaller half slid neatly inside that of the larger one for ease of packing it and moving it about, although Aryll nearly always had it extended. At each end, a glass lens was held in place by a brass ring, the smaller section was sealed with rubber, to protect it from splashes, while the larger had a hole that allowed the air to flow to allow it to be opened and closed.

He raised it to his eye, and looked across to their home.

'I can see our house' he said.

'What's that Link? By the red postbox?' Aryll asked him.

Link moved the telescope to focus on the red wooden box in front of their house. He twisted the telescope's larger section to zoom in.

'What is it?'

'It's the postman,' he told her.

'What's he doing?'

'I think he's collecting the letters'

The postmen on the Great Sea were of the Rito tribe, and lived on an island far to the north. The Rito were a birdlike people, they had the eyes of an eagle, and the beak and wings to match. The postman who delivered to Outset Island was called Quill, and wore the trademark outfit of the postman, a fine dark purple cloth tunic, with belt, not dissimilar in design from Link's new clothes; however, these were of a much finer weave, for aerodynamic flight on the long brown feathered wings they had on each arm.

As he watched, Quill looked from side to side, and a pointed white postman's hat obscured Link's view of his face for a moment. As he turned back, he seemed distracted something in the sky, and looked up; the drooping insulation that covered his ears falling away behind his head.

'He looks kinda weird, doesn't he?' Aryll said rudely, as Link continued to watch him. Quill outstretched his brown wings and started flapping in a sort of panic at what he had seen.

Aryll shouted, 'Link! The sky! Look in the sky!"

- 31 -


	2. Chapter 2: The Forest of Fairies

Chapter 2: The Forest of Fairies

Swinging the telescope upwards, he honed the telescope on a huge bird heading towards the island from the north, with feathers of black, brown and maroon, and four tails of gold and green. In the clutches of its two monstrous claws, Link could see that the bird was carrying a dark-skinned girl with a head of light hair. Not even in stories had Link heard fearsome and dangerous looking animal, and he could hardly take his eyes away from the eyepiece even when Aryll started tapping his arm silently on his right.

He lowered the telescope and followed Aryll's gaze and outstretched finger to a ship larger than he had ever seen. It had a tall mast, held by lines form the stern and long bowsprit, and was pursuing the bird at some speed. Its large square canvas sail rippled in the westerly wind as it approached, and at the top of its mast, above the rounded crows nest, flew a large black flag with a white skull-and-crossed-bones motif emblazoned in its centre.

'P… P…Pir-r-rates…' Aryll stammered.

These pirates, however, were not approaching Outset under the cover of darkness, as pirates were expected to do, and normally did, but in broad daylight, and their main focus seemed to be not on loot, but on the bird in the sky.

'Link! Link! What do we do?' Aryll said, with panic in her voice.

'I… I don't know…' he answered, uncertainly. He raised the telescope once more to his eye, and looked at the pirate ship. Aryll moved around closely behind him, hiding as best she could from both the great bird in the sky, and the fast approaching boat. She was terrified, and put one arm around Link's waist, and placed the other hand in her mouth, and peered around him at where he was looking. A man in a green shirt and red bandanna was standing on deck by the catapult, and seemed to be directing an unseen crew in firing into the sky. His arm pointed repeatedly in the direction of the bird, as the ship fired volley after volley of boulders into the air, with so much force, that they cleared Outset by miles.

Suddenly there was an ear piercing screech from the air, and they looked into the sky to see the bird falter in its flight as it passed low over the westerly peak. One of the rocks from the ship had struck the great animal square on the beak. Aryll squeaked quietly, and Link trained the telescope on the girl that had just fallen several metres from the talons of the bird, and followed her to the trees of the peak, where with a distant rustle, she vanished.

'She fell! She fell into the forest!' Aryll cried, her voice filled now more with concern than with fear from either of the terrors around them. The bird had recovered briefly before hitting the sea, and was flying off into the distance. The pirate ship had ploughed rather quickly into a sand bank just offshore of Outset, and didn't seem to be moving any more. Link could just make out people running around on deck.

'Yes, we need to tell everyone' he said, slowly.

'But she needs help! She might be hurt! That big mean bird dropped her! We need to help her! Oh, Link! What do w-we d-do-o?' Her voice had dropped from concern, through anxious, to panic, and she sat down on her feet, and started to cry. Link knelt down beside her, and gave her a hug, and rubbed her on the back.

'Don't cry, Aryll. It'll be okay… we'll just go and tell Grandma, and Orca. They'll sort it out…'

Slowly, the sobbing subsided and was reduced to sniffs.

'Okay.' She said. She was shaking, and her face was pale. The past few minutes had been more than she was able to cope with. Link helped her wipe the tears from her cheeks.

They sat together for a few minutes, while Aryll became calmer.

'Link?' She asked, 'Will she be all right?'

'Yes,' Link told her more confidently than he felt he perhaps should have done, 'She'll be fine.' He wasn't sure if this was a lie or not. 'Come on, let's go and tell Grandma.'

Still sniffing, Aryll and Link descended the watchtower ladder, and in a few moments were running up the path to their house.

''Hoy! Link!' came a deep voice Orca's freshly opened door, 'What is the matter? You have an urgent look about you… Has something happened? What was that noise?'

The islanders were all out of their homes now, Abe armed with his hoe, and Rose her rolling pin. Link considered that any pirate wanting to raid Outset should need to be more worried of the formidable Rose than of Abe with his hoe, but he said nothing.

Link gestured to Aryll to keep going, and he recounted what he had seen for Orca, the bird, the pirates, and the girl on the cliff peak.

'I see,' he said, when Link had finished, 'from the look on your face, I suspect this is no laughing matter.' Through faded eyes, he regarded Link, thoughtfully, 'No, I must help this poor girl, but I need you to help me… will you help me Link?'

'Me?' Link asked, 'But what can I do?'

'It is unwise to enter the cliff woods, especially alone, and the path up the cliff is full of tall plants. We will need something for you to help cut our way through.'

He followed Orca inside.

When he entered, Orca was reaching for a small brown scabbard from one of the higher shelves. 'You have played combat with me many times, Link, with swords of wood, made by your own hand.'

Orca liked to play-fight with the children on Outset, Grandma disapproved of it, but she saw it was good for them, and they enjoyed it, so didn't stop them. Aryll had played the captured princess, and Link, a brave knight of the kingdom. Link had fought against Orca, who had played the evil king in their games. Zill and Joel had played brave knights too sometimes, waving some sticks against Link or Orca, often at random. Sometimes Link was forced back, and sometimes Orca let him win through.

Usually, no-one was hurt, except those times when Link had not won, and Aryll got upset with Orca for not letting her get rescued, and called him "a big meanie". Link was downheartedly quiet for an hour or so after he had lost a great battle between the army of the good king, and the evil king. Orca had told him once "you must know when you are beaten, Link, not all battles can be won."

Orca stood before Link, and unsheathed the sword.

'This is not such a sword, Link. This is a sword of steel, with a sharp, cutting blade. It is not a toy.'

'Yes, sir,' Link said, oddly formally.

Orca continued, 'Since the olden days,' he said, 'this sword has been used to fend off evil from our island, and it is written in some of the islands older records, which my brother has,' he indicated to Sturgeon's room above, 'that it's blade is infused with the desire to become strong and righteous.'

He performed a few cuts into the air, above Link's head, and turned to look at him.

'If you would accompany me up the cliff, you must have some serious instruction in the way of the sword.

'What say you, Link?'

Orca held the flat of the blade, and offered the hilt out for Link to take. Link moved his right hand towards it, and stopped.

Grandma wouldn't like him using a real sword, she liked him to think the ways of peace. On the other hand, it was only to cut plants as they climbed the cliff path, and he was going to help a person in trouble, as she had always taught him to do.

He moved his hand slowly and clasped the hilt. Orca released the blade.

It was lighter than Link had expected, and it seemed to be weighted more at the handle end than at the tip. Not entirely confident in what "serious instruction" actually meant, he looked confused, from the deadly weapon in his hand back into Orca's dark-tanned face.

Orca laughed out loud, his head tilted back in mirth.

'Today you are the same age as the hero of legend.' He told him, 'It is ironic, it is also said that this is the Hero's Sword.'

Link looked back at the sword.

'Of course, I do not know this to be true, but it is a good sword, nonetheless.' He reached for his old Deku fishing spear from its place on the wall, and provided Link with a scabbard, which he fitted over his shoulder. 'Now, come!'

'Yes, Orca.'

'Good lad.' Link wondered if they would really need these weapons… but then, that big bird didn't look friendly. He followed Orca to the door.

They walked quickly, side by side across the island, Orca, shirtless as he always was, using his spear shaft as a walking pole. They came to the sign on the cliff where the path split at the watchtower. It read, as it always had:

= Watchtower

Forest of Fairies =

Link glanced out over the cliff to the pirate ship was showing its bow on the white sand bank several hundred yards offshore. He took Aryll's telescope from his belt, and looked at it. On deck, he could see there were two pirates, who seemed to be arguing over something. Another pirate was lowering a boat over the side.

'We must not waste time, Link, this girl may be injured if she has fallen as you say, so we will leave the others to deal with our unfortunate guests. Quill is a good man, and even pirates know better than to cross the Rito.' Orca told him.

Link replaced the telescope in his belt and started to follow Orca up the rising semicircular path that led up to the face of the cliff. A natural wall of stone blocked his view of the pirate ship as he walked. There was no fence or wall on the inner side of the path here, and the drop down to Mesa's house was not one Link felt he would like to have taken, so he stuck close to the rock wall.

At the top, was the familiar faded 'No Entry' sign, which stated that that the forest paths were closed until the suspension bridge that spanned the gap between the two peaks had been repaired. This sign had been there ever since Link could remember. Behind it a row of thick bushes blocked their way.

'We shall have to cut our way through,' Orca told him, 'We never did find the time to repair the bridge.'

'Is it safe enough to cross?'

'Yes, I think it will be. Let us proceed.'

Link drew the sword, and swung it at the thick bushes on the path. Where they fell, Orca used his spear to lever the trunks out of the way to allow them to pass. The sword cut quickly through the undergrowth, and they made their way through, until it thinned out into long grass as they climbed into the wind and the weather. They circled the cliff top, and came presently to the damaged suspension bridge.

'I shall go first.' Orca instructed, 'keep to the centre of the boards to maintain your balance, as you are not tall enough to reach the handrails.'

Link followed silently behind as Orca moved onto the bridge, concentrating on where he was placing his footing. The bridge wobbled from side to side in the wind, and bounced up and down as they slowly crossed. At the centre of the bridge, a section of two board's width was missing, where a rope had snapped in the high wind of the great storm. The gap was perhaps just under a metre wide.

'It is not far, we can jump,' Orca increased his speed, and hopped lightly from one section of the bridge to the next, causing it to wobble uncertainly. He turned to Link, and held the shaft of his spear out for Link. 'Now you' he said.

Link glanced down through the gap in the boards at his feet. Below he could see the rocks in the channel.

'The bridge looks much higher from up here,' he said to himself, as much as to Orca.

'Do not lose faith, you must jump confidently. Should you hesitate, you may lessen the distance you may jump.'

Link took a step back, and made a short run to the gap, and cleared it easily. He turned to look at it. It didn't seem quite so far, now.

'Well done, Link.'

They trudged up the forest-side half of the bridge, and came up onto the rock outcropping to which the bridge was fixed. It was overgrown with grass and bushes, and they pushed their way through. They passed through a door sized opening in the rock, which had been cut through several feet of cliff to the woodland area within.

'Look there, Link!'

Link looked at where Orca was pointing. On the other side of a stone wall, there was a young woman dangling from a branch of a tree.

'I see her, that tree must have caught her when she fell.'

They moved through the thick grass. The area was densely forested, and fallen branches, and tangled bushes and brambles slowed their progress. The tree canopy above reduced the light from the sun to a dappling in the heather, and the air was heavy with the haze of summer pollen, and the damp smell of vegetation. The air was eerily still, only the rush of the breeze in the canopy. Link felt uncomfortable, but said nothing as they forced their way. As they reached the foot of the wall, Orca called out up the wall.

''Hoy there! Can you hear me?'

The girl in the tree was hanging from the branch by the back of her navy blue waistcoat, which had prevented her from plummeting to the ground. She had dark tanned skin, and white shorts, from which her sandaled feet were dangling limply. Her eyes were closed, and she said nothing, but she appeared to be breathing normally.

'Can we go round?' Link asked.

'I believe we can. But we cannot climb this wall.' Orca said. From their right, through a gap in the mossy rock, they heard a brief animal-like shriek over the wind in the trees.

'I do not like this, Link. I have heard that sound on several still nights recently, I do not want to see what it is. Let us go on.'

Climbing a lower section of the rock, they came out onto a small platform of moss. Orca, in the lead, dropped to the floor, and motioned for Link to do the same. In the open earthy area ahead of them, strewn with patches of grass and fallen logs, Link could see an animal of some kind sitting on the floor, sleeping. Orca pulled him back behind the mossy rock, where they could not be seen.

'It is as I feared,' Orca whispered.

'What is it?'

'It is what is called a Bokoblin.' Orca's face was stern, and his voice was worried and hushed, 'A creature with no regard for life of any kind. They are greedy, and are feared by even pirates.'

'Have you seen one?'

'I have. In my youth when my brother and I mapped the island of the Fortress, in the north, our small boat was attacked more than once by a raft of several of these monsters.' His face scowled with the memory, 'They are ruthless and uncaring, even for their own skins, and will attack us should we get close.'

'What'll we do?' Link whispered.

'We will have to confront it, if we are to help this girl,' he jerked his head in the direction of the tree behind him, 'They are not bright, but they are mean combatants.'

Link looked at the floor in front of him. He didn't feel ready to fight something that wanted to kill him.

'You fight skilfully, Link, just remember what I have taught you. Are you ready?' Orca stood up.

Link was about to mouth "Yes", but looked back at the floor, shook his head, and said, 'No'.

'That is admirable, Link, for you do well to be cautious.'

Link felt a little weight lift off of him for his honesty, but didn't feel any more ready. He placed the Aryll's telescope on the rock, he didn't want to break that.

They crept forwards, slipping down the other side of the rock without a sound. The sleeping creature was sat on the soft soil before a tree stump. Its eyes were closed, and it had a pig like snout in between two sharp, upward pointing tusks that protruded from its oversized jaw. This wasn't what was worrying Link the most, of course, nor was he particularly worried about the black forked tail that was resting on the floor behind it. No, Link was having trouble contemplating the pointed grey horn in the centre of its forehead.

Orca moved out to the left, and Link, to the right. If it was as bright as Orca had told him, it might get confused with two targets to choose from. Orca's spear was held aloft in his right hand. Link drew the sword from its sheath with his left. It made a slight metallic ring.

Suddenly, the Bokoblin awoke.

'Ehk?' it said as it sprung to its feet. Looking first at Orca, and then at Link with its narrow eyes, it selected Link as the smaller and weaker of the two foes, and charged at him with a deep throated gurgling screech.

Link raised the sword in front of him, and swung it across and back before the creatures face. It stopped, recognising the glint of a metal blade and lowered its head, forcing Link back with the threat of its horn.

Link hesitated, he'd never had to defend himself in this fashion, and the Bokoblin used the moment and leapt at him, bringing a clawed arm down towards his face. He raised his arm automatically in defence, and cried out in pain as the blow threw him back onto the soil, the sword falling with a thud, useless, on to the ground beside him. He scrambled backwards, not taking his eyes off of the advancing monster as it raised its claw to strike again, and raised his arm again, turning his head to the side protectively, his muscles tensed for the impending assault.

But it didn't come.

Looking back at the Bokoblin, it had paused, its arm raised above his head, ready to attack, its mouth open, and its eyes tight shut. It fell to its knees, and Link rolled to the side as it collapsed where he had been seconds before.

Orca removed his spear.

'Are you well, Link?' He asked, as calmly as he would ask the time of day.

Link nodded, although he was cradling his battered arm. 'I think it's just bruised.' He pulled up his sleeve and examined the knock. It wasn't cut, but it was painful, so he rubbed it. 'Thank you.' He added, as an afterthought.

'You must not hesitate in battle, Link. An enemy will use any advantage it can get. Your arm is not a good shield.'

Link nodded gravely.

'Yes, sir.'

'Now, pick up your sword'

Link did so, and was about to place it back into its sheath.

'You must always remember to clean your sword after battle, Link, so it will remember its edge.'

Obediently, Link wiped the mud from the blade in the grass, and put it away.

'Very good.' Orca said.

They looked at the fallen Bokoblin, who was beginning to emit dark purple smoke from where it was on the floor.

'What's happening?' Link asked anxiously as he took a step back.

'Watch,' Orca told him.

The smoke swirled contrary to the wind direction in the air in front of them, and seemed to glow with an unnatural darkness, before it dissipated, and vanished, leaving behind only a small, stiff canvas satchel, and a single green Rupee.

'Where is it?' Link said, his voice rising with panic as he looked around for it.

'I do not know,' Orca replied, 'You see, I am not sure that this creature was entirely real.' He held up the spearhead, which had been stained with sticky black blood, but which had now faded with the same purple-black dark smoke as the rest of the creature had, and was now clean.

'But it hit me!' Link exclaimed, 'And it hurt! How is it not real?'

'Again, I do not have such knowledge, Link. But it is gone, now. Had it been a real animal, it would have lain here for the worms, yet it has not. I fear it may be a creature of magic, and not a virtuous magic, at that.'

'Magic?'

'Yes, Link. Magic. It is not something that is the realm merely of tales for children at bedtime.'

'Really?'

'Yes. Will you not believe my word? I have seen many things, in my time.'

Link nodded, and looked back at the tiny canvas satchel on the ground. It was a faded military green, no bigger than two twenty Rupee pieces, and the strap was missing.

'What's this?' he asked.

'I do not know, but it doesn't seem to have disappeared with the Bokoblin, perhaps it was stolen?' Orca mused.

Opening it, Link looked inside. It contained several divisions in which to store numerous small items, much like his recently acquired bait bag, but there didn't appear to be anything spectacular about it. He picked up the Rupee from the ground, which was large enough to fill the palm of his hand, and dropped it into the satchel. As he watched, it seemed to shrink in size, and fell neatly into one of the compartments.

Link reeled, and looked back at it.

'What is it, Link?'

He held out the bag for Orca to see.

'By the Goddesses!' He exclaimed, as he examined it and handed it back to Link, 'It is a rare treasure you have there!'

Reaching in with his hand, towards the Rupee, he felt a tingling sensation as he watched his hand visibly shrink, and pulled it out again hurriedly. It felt like he'd sat on it.

'My hand got smaller, too!' He told Orca.

'I do not think you need fear it, Link. It appears to have some magical power about it. Did I not tell you of Magic? There, look at the back!'

Link turned it around. A sewn in loop that would allow it to fit to his belt, had a faded symbol of three triangles, arranged together to form a larger triangle with a gap in between. The symbol was the same as that which was patterned onto the doors of the islands home, except that it was the other way up.

'That is a good symbol, Link, I think you may trust it.' Orca told him.

Reaching into the bag again, he clasped his hand around the Rupee that he felt was somewhere below the bottom of the bag, and pulled it out. It was the same Rupee he had dropped in, and his hand was the same one that had retrieved it. He placed the green glass piece back into the bag, and with it placed a yellow one from his tunic pocket. He took also the telescope from the rock on which he had located it, and put it in the bag as well. It didn't get any heavier, either; it was as light as it had been when it was empty.

'My word, Link! That will serve you well! Now, attach it to your belt, and let us go on.'

He looked up at the rocks that they would now have to climb. They were overgrown with grass, and bushes, and they would need to cut their way through them.

After Link had reset his belt clasp, he climbed upon the tree stump, and jumped across to the plants, and tried to push his way through. They were so tangled with bindweed that he had to use his sword once again to cut through the thin branches, moving slowly up a damp earthy slope as he did so. Orca followed behind, having to part more of the undergrowth with his larger size.

The vegetation thinned and a rotted wooden sign was standing by a wide circular hollow. He clambered up the ledge, and read it.

It said, "Fairy Fountain Site"

'Orca!' He called back, 'I found a fairy fountain!'

Orca emerged from the bushes, 'Do you see any fairies?'

Link looked. In the centre of the hollow, which looked like it may once have been a pool, stood a large cracked boulder, of a different, lighter grey rock from the surrounding cliff.

'No, just grass', he said disappointedly.

Orca was now stood beside him. 'Ill fortune for the fortune seeker.' he said, smiling, 'but I think you've had enough fortune for ten minutes. Come.'

They used a fallen tree trunk to climb over a lower section of the natural rocky barrier that walled in a forested clearing, the sunlight falling strongly through the canopy. Link was grateful for the light and the warmth that came.

Once down the other side, they were about towards the tree on the far side in which the fallen girl was hanging, but not before they heard a low moaning call from the sky above.

Looking up they saw two wildly flapping birds above the trees, and they seemed to be carrying something. Link and Orca didn't have much time to determine what they were before the payload was dropped on top of them. Rolling to his left, Link turned to face the attack with the sword drawn in his hand before he knew he was doing so.

Orca wasn't quite so quick, he had jumped to the right just as two Bokoblins had landed in the space where he and Link had been standing, and seeing Link with his sword out and ready, and Orca sprawled on the floor with his spear beneath him, getting to his feet, they set upon Orca.

This time, Link didn't hesitate; he darted to Orca, and thrust his sword into the back of one of the Bokoblins. He struck a bone, and the monster turned in anger and pain and flailed his claws at Link, knocking Link's hat from his head as he ducked and thrust the sword up towards it, like a dart.

For Link, time seemed to stop in that moment. He saw his sword impaled in the monster's chest, purple black ooze starting to trickle from its front, and he realised, that for the past twenty seconds or so, he had been acting entirely out of concern for his mentor. He hadn't been thinking about what he was doing, nor how he was going to get out of this without being injured, or even where he was going swing the sword. He thought now, and was set upon by beasts of evil magic.

He saw Orca, still on the floor but now on his back, his spear held across his front to fend off the oncoming creature, a shallow gash in his upper arm, across the image of an anchor he had had tattooed there.

He felt his sword arm grow heavy as the Bokoblin began to sink to the floor, and he pulled the blade back with a shout he hadn't meant to utter. It was then that the realisation hit him. He'd killed it, actually extinguished its life. It was a monster no more, and it faded slowly into dark purple smoke. The shock of this made him stop, and it took his attention from the second creature, which had not retained the upper hand over Orca.

With a blow from the shaft of his spear, Orca had sent it flying through the air, straight into Link, who was knocked to the ground. With a dexterity even Link hadn't expected, he rolled quickly to his feet, and readied again with his sword, brought it down point first at the sprawled creature.

'EKH!' it shouted, remaining on the ground beneath the sword's tip. Link was thinking now, no longer acting on impulse, and didn't want to kill anything. He held his sword uncertainly over the creature while Orca drove his spear into the creature's chest.

As it evaporated, Link realised he was holding his breath, so released it.

'Do you hesitate, Link? You should not, a Bokoblin will show you none,'

Link held the sword in his hand and watched the purple ooze of Bokoblin evaporate from it's surface, leaving only the shine of the blade. For a moment, link felt that he could see the sword glowing, radiating a gentle righteousness for the magic it had vanquished. Link stared at it, and suddenly he knew that what he had done was not an unforgivable thing, but something worthy of the Hero's clothes he was wearing. All this came in an instant, and then it was gone, and he was left with the sick feeling that he had killed something he shouldn't have done.

Orca looked up into the tree, where the female pirate had just woken up and had started to struggle in the air. The branch she was on gave way, and she fell to the ground.

She stood up to see Link climbing the grass covered rock. Looking him and his green tunic up and down for a moment, and glancing at Orca behind him, she straightened her expression.

'Wow. What's with that get-up?'

'Uh… It's my birthday,' Link managed.

The pirate stared at him a little longer. 'Well, whatever. So, where am I?'

'You're on the first peak of Outset Island, Miss', Orca explained

'Oh, that's right! That giant bird came and…'

'Miss! Miss Tetra!' A burly pirate in scruffy dark green was waving and shouting frantically from the entranceway into the forest. Tetra jumped down from the rock on which she was standing, followed by Link and Orca.

'Oh! Oh, thank… Thank goodness! You're safe!' The pirate panted and mopped his brow on his arm, 'When I saw you get dropped on this summit, I thought for sure you'd…'

'Summit?' Tetra queried, 'So that bird dropped me on the top of a mountain?'

'On the first peak of Outset Island, Miss' Orca repeated. She showed no sign that she'd even heard him speak, and her face contorted with anger, her blue eyes frowning at the thought.

'Well wasn't that nice of it!' she started moving towards the gap in the cliff. 'Well don't just stand there,' she gestured to the pirate with one arm, 'Let's go! It's time to repay our debt to that bird in full!'

'But, Miss…' the pirate pointed an arm at Link and Orca, 'What about this boy?'

'Don't worry about him, come on!'

With a quick glance at Link, the burly pirate ran after Tetra, and Link and Orca followed behind, emerging from the entrance to the mountaintop forest in close pursuit, and stopped with them on the grass outside. As his eyes adjusted for the light he heard Aryll shout from the other side of the bridge.

''Hoy! Big Brother!'

She was standing between the two large posts that supported the ropes for the high bridge, with a cluster of seagulls flying around her head. With one arm shielding his eyes from the sun, Link smiled and waved back.

'Stay there, Aryll,' Orca called from behind him.

Appearing not to hear, Aryll started to cross the rope bridge, giggling as she did so, seemingly unaware of the gap in the middle. Link was suddenly aware of a dark shape covering the sunlight. Before he could react, a low eagle-like screech filled his eardrums, causing him to flinch.

The great black bird swooped out of the sky with unfaltering accuracy, and snatched Aryll from the centre of the bridge in its talons. Its vast wings spanned much greater a gap than the length of the bridge, which swung wildly from the force of the impact, and he, Orca and the two pirates were bowled over by the blast of air that followed.

In mere seconds the bird was over a hundred feet away, Orca's speedily thrown spear falling well short of its mark, landing harmlessly in the sea.

'BROTHER!!!' Aryll shrieked, her voice growing distant in the wind.

At the definite sound of a determined steel on steel ring of a sword loosed from its scabbard, Tetra looked round to see Link charge through the long grass towards the edge of the cliff, his eyes fixed only on the bird ahead of him in the sky.

He glanced only too late at the sea and rocks below which told him too late what was about to happen, and a tight grip on his wrist nearly pulled his arm out of its socket. His back slammed into the rock behind him, and he waved his sword in the air in front of him, willing it to reach the shrinking wings.

'Stupid kid!' Tetra shouted down from above him, the burly pirate pulling her back from the edge.

Link struggled and shouted, kicking his dangling feet in the air.

'Get a hold on yourself! She's gone. There's nothing you can do.'

With one more shout of anguish, Link stopped squirming, and simply stared as his sister floated away on the breeze. Two seagulls abandoned their island home and followed. For Link, this act was a tiny pinpoint of hope in all that was lost. He knew what he had to do, but for now, tears escaped his eyes, rolled down his cheek, and fell into the sea below.

Orca helped Tetra and the burly pirate haul Link back onto the cliff, who made no attempt to do anything other than flop onto the ground and stare into the sky, tears welling in his eyes.

- 22 -


End file.
